Revealing a Recipe for Success

Justin Wheatley is the Retail Channel Manager at Rivalea–one of Australia’s leading agri-food companies. Justin looks after brand management for Rivalea’s pork lines including Murray Valley Pork, Family Chef and Rivalea Australia. If you shop at independent supermarkets including IGA and Foodworks, you’ve probably seen or bought Rivalea’s pork products.

Making magic

Since 2013, Justin and Rivalea’s Family Chef brand have seen lots of success. Late last year, Rivalea aired its first television commercial (TVC) campaign for Family Chef to viewers in South Australia.

“These videos started as a series of six-second looping Vines for social media,” said Justin. “We had such a strong response from customers that we decided to turn them into 15 second TVCs. The videos work so well because they demonstrate how simply and easily these products fit into our everyday lives.”

Forging partnerships with innovators

Another success was Rivalea’s decision to partner with leading Sydney label company, Luminar. About three years ago, Justin found himself in a pickle: he needed to produce labels within just 24 hours.

“A colleague recommended Luminar in Sydney because the team were efficient with samples and short runs,” said Justin. “I did a quick Google search and found Mike Ellis, the owner.”

Sure enough, Justin had his labels the next day. “Mike and his team delivered on their promise: they did exactly what they said they would do.”

Luminar passed Rivalea’s strict quality assurance and food safety requirements and was listed on the company’s preferred suppliers list. Since then, Luminar has become a key supplier for Rivalea.

“The team’s integrity really stands out,” said Justin. “It’s not a sell and forget service, they’re problem solvers. They come to me with innovative new ideas because they know us and want to see us succeed.”

An industry first

When the Luminar team suggested ‘peel and reveal’ labelling for the Family Chef range, Justin was impressed.  “No one in the pork industry had done it before,” he said.

Peel and reveal, also known as peel off stickers, are now widely used on food products to reveal recipes, cooking instructions or special offers. Peel and reveal labelling also allows producers to include more information on their packaging without increasing area space, saving on labour and material costs.

Photo: Rivalea use peel and reveal labels by Luminar to showcase pork recipes on Family Chef products.

“Did you know that most people have no idea how to cook pork?” asked Justin. “Why? Because, for many, it’s unfamiliar. We use our labels to educate our customers about how easy-peasy pork is, and it works.”

To find out where you can buy Family Chef products, visit the website. To get started on your next labelling job, contact us today.